Dave Porter on Cave Island: or, A Schoolboy's Mysterious Mission

“I’ve got a knapsack,” said one of the castaway sailors. “You can take that along, filled,” and so it was arranged. Dave carried his gun and the captain had a pistol.

“If there is any game, we’ll have a try for it,” said Dave. “Even a few plump birds would make fine eating.”

“Yes, or a rabbit or hare,” added Roger.

The party walked along the shore as far as they could go and then, coming to what appeared to be an old trail, took to that.

“What do you make of this path?” said Dave. “I had an idea the island was uninhabited.”

“It is supposed to be,” answered Captain Sanders. “But there is no reason why somebody shouldn’t live here.”

Presently they came to a fine spring of water. Near by lay an old rusty cup, and a little further on a broken bucket.

“Somebody has been here and that recently,” was Dave’s comment. “I hope we are on the trail of Merwell and Jasniff.”

They walked on a little further and then, of a sudden, Captain Sanders halted the boys and pointed up into one of the trees.

“Wild pigeons!” exclaimed Dave. “And hundreds of them! Shall I give them a couple of barrels, captain?”

“Might as well, lad. Wild pigeons are good eating, especially when you are hungry. Get as many of ’em as you can.”

Dave approached a little closer and took aim with care. Bang! went the shotgun, and a wild fluttering and flying followed. Bang! went the second barrel of the weapon, and then, as the smoke cleared away, the boys and the captain saw seven of the pigeons come down to the ground. Several others fluttered around and Phil caught one and wrung its neck, and Roger laid another low with a stick he had picked up.

“Fine shots, both of them,” declared Captain Sanders. “Now load up again, Dave, so as to be ready for anything else that shows up.”

“I am afraid I have scared the rest of the game,” declared our hero, and so it proved, for after that they saw nothing but some small birds.

They passed through a thick woods and then came rather unexpectedly to a wall of rocks, all of a hundred feet in height. At the base of the wall was an opening leading into a broad cave. Near the entrance was the remains of a campfire.

“Somebody has been here and that recently!” cried Phil, as he examined the embers.

“Must be Merwell and Jasniff!” cried Dave. “For if they were strangers they would come out and see what the shooting meant.”

“Shall we go into the cave, or continue on the way to the shore?” questioned the senator’s son.

“Oh, let us take a peep into the cave first,” cried Phil. “It looks as if it was inhabited.”

The others were willing, and lighting a firebrand that was handy, they entered the cavern. In front they found the opening to be broad and low, but in the rear the ceiling was much higher and there were several passageways leading in as many different directions.

“What an island!” murmured Roger. “Why, one could spend a year in visiting all the caves!”

“It’s like a great, big sponge!” returned Phil. “Holes everywhere!”

“Take care that you don’t slip down into some opening!” warned Captain Sanders.

In one of the passages they came across the remains of a meal and also some empty bottles. Then Dave saw some bits of paper strewn over the rocky floor.

“What are they, Phil?” he asked, and then both commenced to pick the pieces up. Roger helped, while the captain held the firebrand.

“Well, of all things!” cried the shipowner’s son. “Now what do you make of this?”

“The chart!” cried Dave.

“Yes!”

“What chart?” queried the master of the Golden Eagle.

“The treasure chart those four Englishmen had,” answered Dave. “Now what made them come here with it and tear it to pieces?”

“Hum!” mused the captain. “One of two things would make ’em do that, lad. Either they got the treasure and had no further use for the map, or else they found the whole thing was a fake and in their rage they tore the map to shreds.”

“They must have gotten the gold!” murmured Roger and Phil.

“No, I think they got fooled,” said Dave.

“The question is, if those Britishers were here, where did they go to?” asked the captain.

“Let us call,” suggested Dave. “They may be in some part of this cave where they couldn’t hear the shots from my gun.”

All called out several times, and listened intently for a reply.

“Hark! I hear something!” cried Roger. “Listen!”

They strained their ears, and from what appeared to be a great distance they heard a human voice. But what was said they could not make out.

“Too many echoes here,” declared the captain. “A fellow can’t tell where the cry comes from.”

“Well, let us investigate,” said our hero.

They moved forward and backward, up one passageway and down another, calling and listening. At times the voice seemed to be quite close, then it sounded further off than ever.

“This sure is a mystery!” declared Phil. “What do you make of it, Dave?”

“I am beginning to think the call came from somewhere overhead,” answered our hero. “Captain, see if you can flash a light on those rocks to the left of our heads.”

Captain Sanders did as requested, and presently all in the party saw another passageway, leading up from a series of rocks that formed something of a natural stairway. Up this they went, Dave leading the van. Then they came to a small opening between two rocks.

“Help! help!” came in a half-smothered voice. “Help, please. Don’t leave me here in the dark any longer!”

CHAPTER XXIV – JASNIFF AND MERWELL

“It’s a man!”

“One of the Englishmen!”

“You are right, lads,” came from Captain Sanders. “And see, he is bound hands and feet to the rocks!”

What the master of the Golden Eagle said was true, and as the firebrand was flashed on the scene, the chums could do little but stare in astonishment.

Lying on his back between the rocks was the Englishman named Giles Borden. Hands and feet were bound with a strong cord, which ran around a projection of the rocks in such a manner that the prisoner could scarcely move.

“Who tied you up?” questioned Dave, as he and Phil set to work to liberate the prisoner.

“Geswick, Pardell, and Rumney,” groaned the prisoner. “Oh, if only I had my hands on them!”

“Why did they do it?” asked Captain Sanders.

“They wanted to rob me – and they did rob me!” answered Giles Borden. “Oh, help me out of this wretched hole and give me a drink of water! I am dying from thirst!”

Not without difficulty the man was freed of the rope and helped to get out from between the rocks. Then Dave and Roger half carried him down to the cave proper. The crowd had a canteen of water and the man drank, eagerly.

“So your friends robbed you?” said Captain Sanders, curiously.

“Do not call them friends of mine!” returned Giles Borden. “They are not friends – they are vipers, wolves! Oh, if ever I meet them again at home I’ll soon have them in prison, or know the reason why!”

“Hadn’t you better tell us all about it?” went on the master of the Golden Eagle.

“Wait a minute!” cried Dave. “Do you suppose those men are anywhere near here?”

“I don’t know. They said they would be back, but they did not come.”

“They may have seen us and skipped out,” ventured the senator’s son.

“More than likely,” groaned Giles Borden. “Now that they have my money they won’t want to stay here. They’ll take passage on that ship as soon as she comes in and leave me to shift for myself.”

“Tell us your story, so we can understand what you are talking about,” said Captain Sanders.

In a disconnected manner the Englishman related his tale, pausing occasionally to take another drink of water. He said he was from London and had met Geswick, Pardell, and Rumney less than six months before. They had come to him with the story of a wonderful pirates’ treasure said to be hidden on Cave Island, and had asked him to finance an expedition in search of it.

“I had just fallen heir to five thousand pounds through the death of my father,” he went on, “and I was anxious to get the treasure, so I consented to pay the expenses of the trip, taking the three men along. They had the chart that you saw on shipboard and some other particulars, and they made me bring along a thousand pounds extra, stating that we might have to pay some natives well to get them to show us where the particular cave we were seeking was located.”

Then had followed the trip to Florida and the one to Barbados. At the latter island a schooner had been chartered to take them to Cave Island, where they were landed on the eastern shore. The schooner was to come back for the Englishmen a week later.

“As soon as the treasure hunt began I suspected that I was being hoaxed,” continued Giles Borden. “For all I knew, we were alone on the island. We found several huts, but they were all deserted. We visited a score of caves, but saw nothing that looked like a treasure. Then, one afternoon, Geswick asked me about the extra thousand pounds I was carrying. I grew suspicious and tried to hide the money between the rocks. The three caught me at it and pounced on the money like a pack of wolves. Then, when I remonstrated, they laughed at me, and told me to keep quiet, that they were going to run matters to suit themselves.”

“They must have intended to rob you from the start,” said Dave.

“You are right, and I was a fool to trust them. As soon as they had my money, one of them, Rumney, tore up the chart and threw the pieces in my face. That angered me so greatly that I struck him with my fist, knocking him down. Then the three leaped on me and made me a prisoner, binding me with the rope. I tried my best to get away, but could not. That was at night. In the morning they went off, saying they would come back later and give me something to eat. But that is the last I have seen or heard of them.”

“If we hadn’t found you, you might have starved to death,” murmured Captain Sanders. “They ought to be punished heavily for this – and for robbing you!”

The Englishman was glad enough to get something to eat, and then said he felt much stronger.

“But what brings you to this island?” he questioned, while partaking of the food.

“We are after a pair of criminals,” answered Dave, as the others looked at him, not knowing what to say. “Two young fellows who ran away with some valuable jewels. I suppose you saw nothing of them.”

“No, as I said before, we saw nobody.”

“They are on this island.”

“Then I hope you catch them. And I hope you’ll aid me in catching those other scamps.”

“We’ll certainly do that,” answered Captain Sanders.

A little later the whole party left the cave, and Giles Borden pointed out a number of other caves he had visited.

“The island is full of them,” declared the Englishman. “And one has to be careful, for fear of falling into a hole at every step.”

The middle of the afternoon found the party once more at the water’s edge. They had seen no trace of Jasniff and Merwell, or of the rascally Englishmen. All were tired out and content to rest for a little while.

“Looks like a wild goose chase, doesn’t it, Dave?” remarked Roger.

“Oh, you mustn’t grow discouraged so quickly, Roger,” was Dave’s answer. “Unless Jasniff and Merwell have a chance to leave this island we’ll be sure to locate them, sooner or later. What I am worried about mostly is the question: Have they the jewels or did the gems go to the bottom of the ocean?”

“Yes, that’s the most important question of all.”

“It will be poor consolation to catch Jasniff and Merwell and not get the jewels,” put in Phil. “I reckon, Dave, you’d rather have it the other way around – get the jewels and miss Jasniff and Merwell.”

“Indeed, yes, Phil.”

“In case we don’t – ” began the senator’s son, and then stopped short. He had seen Captain Sanders leap up and start inland.

“What did you see, Captain?” asked Dave.

“I saw somebody looking at us, from behind yonder trees!” cried the master of the Golden Eagle.

“One of the Englishmen?” queried Phil.

“No, it was somebody younger – looked a little like that picture of Link Merwell!”

“Come on – after them!” cried Dave, and started on a run in the direction the captain indicated.

All were soon on the way, climbing over some rough rocks at first and then crashing through the heavy undergrowth. Then they entered a forest of tropical trees and vines.

“I see them!” exclaimed Dave, after several hundred feet had been covered. “Jasniff and Merwell as sure as you live! Stop! Stop, I tell you!” he called out.

“You keep back, Dave Porter!” yelled Nick Jasniff in return. “Keep back, or it will be the worse for you!”

“Jasniff, you had better surrender!” cried Roger.

“We’ll be sure to get you sooner or later!” added Phil.

“You’ll never catch me!” answered the other. “Now keep back, or maybe somebody will get shot.”

“Do you think he’ll shoot?” asked Captain Sanders, in some alarm, while Giles Borden stopped short.

“Possibly,” answered Dave. “But I am going after him anyway,” he added sturdily. “I came here to catch those rascals and I am going to do it.”

“And I am with you,” said Phil, promptly.

“Scare ’em with your gun, Dave,” suggested the senator’s son.

“I will,” was our hero’s reply, and he brought the weapon to the front. “I’ve got a gun, Jasniff!” he called out. “You had better stop! And you had better stop too, Merwell!”

“Don’t yo-you shoot at us!” screamed Link Merwell, in sudden terror. And then he ran with all speed for the nearest trees and dove out of sight. The next instant Jasniff disappeared, likewise.

Dave was now thoroughly aroused, and he resolved to do his best to run the rascals down and corner them. Shifting his shotgun once more to his back, he ran on in the direction the pair had taken, and Roger, Phil, and the captain and the Englishman followed.

Listening occasionally, they could hear Jasniff and Merwell crashing through the undergrowth and at the same time calling to each other. Evidently they had become separated and were trying to get together again.

As they advanced into the forest, Dave caught sight of Merwell. He was behind a low fringe of bushes and an instant later disappeared.

“Stop, Merwell!” he called out. “It won’t do you any good to run. We are bound to catch you, sooner or later.”

“Yo-you let me alone, Dave Porter!” spluttered Merwell. He was almost out of breath, so violent had been his exertions.

Dave kept on and soon reached the low bushes. Then he saw Merwell again, this time leaping for some brushwood between two tall rocks.

“I’ve got you now!” he said, sharply. “You may as well give in!”

“Oh, Porter, please let me – ” commenced Link Merwell, and then Dave’s hand caught him by the shoulder and whirled him about.

As this happened something else occurred that filled both pursued and pursuer with alarm. The grass and brushwood under their feet began to give way. Then of a sudden Link Merwell sank from sight, and Dave disappeared after him!

In the meanwhile Phil and the others kept on in the direction Nick Jasniff had taken. Twice they caught sight of the former bully of Oak Hall, but each time he was further away than before.

“You’ll not catch me!” cried Jasniff. “You might as well give up trying.” Then he dove into another section of the forest and they saw no more of him.

“What has become of Dave?” asked Phil, when he and Roger came together, a little later.

“I thought he was with you, Phil.”

“And I thought he was with you.”

“He went after that other chap,” put in Captain Sanders. “Perhaps he caught him. They were over in that direction,” and the captain pointed with his hand.

All proceeded in the direction indicated. But they did not catch sight of either Dave or Merwell.

“Well, this is strange, to say the least,” remarked Phil, after they had called out several times. “What do you make of it, Roger?”

“I’m sure I don’t know, Phil. They can’t have gotten so far away but what they could hear us call.”

“Maybe they fell into one of the caves,” suggested Captain Sanders.

“If they have, we had better hunt for Dave at once,” returned Roger.

CHAPTER XXV – LINK MERWELL’S STORY

Down and down and still down went Dave, with Link Merwell in front of him. Daylight was left behind with a suddenness that was appalling. The brushwood scratched our hero’s face and he could not repress a cry of alarm. Merwell screamed loud and long and an echo came back that was weird and ghostlike. Then came a mighty splash, and both boys went into the water over their heads.

Dave was a good swimmer, and as soon as he entered the water he struck out to save himself. He came up in almost utter darkness, so he had to go it blindly, not knowing in what direction to turn. Then he heard a wild spluttering and knew the sounds came from his enemy.

“Merwell!”

“Oh, Porter! Sa-save me, please!” gasped Link Merwell.

“Why don’t you swim? – that is what I am doing.”

“I – I – struck my head on a rock! Oh, save me!” And then came a gasp, and the scamp disappeared under the surface.

Dave was close by and knew the direction by the noise. Taking a few strokes, he bumped into Merwell, who promptly tried to catch his would-be rescuer by the throat. But our hero was on guard and turned him around.

“Keep quiet, or I’ll let go!” he ordered, as he began to tread water. As Merwell obeyed, Dave struck out to where he saw a faint streak of light. He made out a shelving rock, and after some difficulty, reached this. Here the water was only up to his waist, and he waded along, half carrying his enemy, until they reached another series of rocks, where both crawled up to a spot that was dry. From somewhere overhead came a faint streak of light, testifying to the fact that there was an opening beyond, even if it could not be seen.

“Oh, my head!” murmured Link Merwell, and put up one hand to a lump that was rising on his forehead.

“I got struck myself,” said Dave. “But it didn’t amount to much. I told you to stop. If you had done so, we wouldn’t have gotten into this pickle.”

“Whe-where are we?” asked Merwell, and there was a shiver in his tone.

“Down at the bottom of that hole.” Dave tried to pierce the darkness. “Looks like some underground river to me.”

“The water is salt.”

“Then this place must connect with the ocean.” Dave drew a deep breath. “Merwell, tell me truthfully, what did you do with those jewels?” he questioned, eagerly. Even in that time of peril he could not forget the mission that had brought him to Cave Island.

“Who – who said I had the jewels?” faltered the other.

“I know you and Jasniff took them – it is useless for you to deny it.”

“How do you know that?”

“Never mind now. Answer my question. Have you the jewels, or did you give them to Jasniff?”

“I didn’t give Nick anything.”

“Then you have them.”

“How do you know?”

“I am not here to answer questions, Link Merwell. I want to know what you did with the jewels.” Dave’s voice grew stern. “Answer me at once!” And he caught Merwell by the arm.

“Don’t – don’t shove me into the water!” cried the scamp, in alarm, although Dave had no intention of doing as he imagined. “I – I – we – er – we divided the jewels between us. But Nick got the best of them.”

“And what did you do with your share?”

“I’ll – er – I’ll tell you when we get out of this hole.”

“You’ll tell me right now, Merwell!” And again Dave caught the culprit by the arm.

“I – I put my share of the jewels in my money-belt,” he faltered.

“Have you it on now?”

“Yes. But Nick has the best of the jewels – I got only the little ones,” went on Link Merwell, half-angrily. It was easy to surmise that he and Jasniff had not gotten along well together.

“How is it Jasniff got the best of them?”

“He had the jewel-case when we were about to leave the bark during the storm. Everybody was excited, and he said we couldn’t carry the case – that it wouldn’t be safe, for we might drop it and all of the jewels would be lost. He said we had better divide them and put them in our belts. We had bought belts for that purpose in Jacksonville. So we took the jewels out of the case and threw the box away. I thought I had my share, but after we got to this island, and I had a chance to look, I saw he had the lion’s share, about three-quarters, in fact, and all the big ones.”

“And he has them now?”

“Yes, – that is, he did have them just before we saw you.”

“Did you sell or pawn any of the jewels?”

“Only a few small ones. We were afraid to offer the big ones, so soon after the – well, you know,” and Link Merwell stopped short, looking everything but happy.

“You mean so soon after the robbery,” said Dave, bluntly.

“Yes.”

“Link, whatever – but never mind that now,” continued our hero, hastily. “Hand over the money-belt.”

“What, now?”

“Yes, at once. I’ll not trust you to carry those jewels a minute longer.”

“Can’t you wait till we get out of this wretched hole?”

“I might, but I am not going to. Hand it over and be careful that none of the jewels are lost. Your father may have to pay for the others.”

With fingers that trembled from fear and chilliness, Link Merwell slipped his hands under the light clothing he wore and took off the money-belt that encircled his waist.

“There is some money there that belongs to me,” he began, hesitatingly.

“You’ll get back what is yours, never fear,” answered Dave, and took the belt. He saw to it that it was tightly closed, then fastened it around his own waist.

“Remember, Nick has the best of the jewels,” went on Merwell, rather spitefully.

“I am not likely to forget it,” answered Dave, grimly. “Now, the sooner we get out of this hole the better.”

Merwell was just as anxious to see daylight, even if he was to be held a prisoner, and together the boys hunted around for some exit from the underground watercourse. But the only way out seemed to be far overhead, and to climb up the smooth, sloping rocks proved impossible.

“Oh, what shall we do?” groaned Merwell, after they had attempted to climb up and had failed. “We are caught like rats in a trap!”

“Perhaps we’ll have to swim for it,” answered Dave. “This water is very salt, which proves it comes from the ocean. Moreover, it is gradually going down, showing it is affected by the tide. Let us follow the stream for a short distance and see where it leads to.”

Merwell demurred, but he did not want to remain behind alone in the semi-darkness, so he followed Dave, and both waded and swam a distance of several hundred feet. Here the underground river made a turn around the rocks, and both boys were delighted to see a streak of sunlight resting on the water.

“An opening of some sort!” cried our hero. “Come on!” And he swam on boldly and Merwell followed as quickly as he could.

Soon the pair reached a break in the cave. On either side were walls of rocks, uneven and covered with scanty bushes and immense trailing vines. The opening was about a hundred feet in length, and beyond it the stream of salty water plunged into another cavern, undoubtedly on its way to the ocean.

“Well, we are out of the cave in one way but not in another,” observed Dave, as he stood on the dry rocks and gazed about. “It’s going to be a stiff climb to get out of here.”

“Ca-can’t you wait till I – I get my breath,” panted Merwell.

“Yes, for I want to get my own breath back. Perhaps we’ll have to go through that next cave to get out,” he continued, after a pause.

“Oh, I hope not! I hate it underground!” And Merwell shivered. “Besides, it’s cold,” he went on, to cover up the tremor in his voice.

“Yes, it is cold,” returned Dave, shortly.

He sat down to rest, and Merwell followed suit. On all sides were the rocky walls and trailing vines, while at their feet ran the silent, mysterious stream of salty water.

Dave looked at the walls and the stream, and then looked at Merwell. The face of the other youth was a study. He was downcast to the last degree.

“Link, what made you do it?” he asked, in a voice that was not unkindly.

“I didn’t do it – that is, it wasn’t my plan!” burst out the culprit, passionately. “Oh, I know they’ll hold me for it, just the same as they’ll hold Nick, if they catch him! But I’ll tell you honestly, Dave, it wasn’t any of my planning. I’m bad, and I know it, but I am not as bad as that. It was Nick who got the whole thing up. You know how mad he has been at you ever since he had to leave Oak Hall. Well, it was his plan to make you a prisoner first and then make it look as if you had robbed the jewelry works. You ask Doctor Montgomery if that isn’t so. Well, the first part of the plan fell through, for you got away. Then he got me to go to Crumville, and found out where we could get the dynamite. I got scared then and wanted to back out, but he said if I did he’d throw all the blame on me, and so I stuck to him. I wish I hadn’t done it,” concluded Merwell, bitterly.